Tax arrears due to lengthy judicial process – COPA

The Commissioner General of Inland Revenue H. M. C Bandara had informed the Committee on Public Accounts (COPA) that his department had not been able to recover billions of rupees in tax arrears due to lengthy judicial process and the attendant delays, COPA Chairman Prof. Tissa Vitharana told a committee meeting recently.

The COPA stressed the need to expedite the court process to recover the arrears and prevent delays and decided to summon the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Finance and the Inland Revenue Department for a discussion.

COPA chairman Prof. Vitharana said that the tax system should be streamlined and steps taken to change laws, if necessary.

The COPA also said that the amount of tax that needed to be recovered was higher than what was recorded. It informed the Inland Revenue Department that it should be resolved soon. The Committee directed the Commissioner General of Inland Revenue to submit a report by March 31, 2021.

The Committee also directed the Inland Revenue Department to expedite the recovery of tax arrears and fines.

The Committee also pointed out the importance of merging institutions including the Department of Motor Traffic, Land Registry Offices with the Department of Inland Revenue for the tax collection process. The Inland Revenue Department said 29 connected institutions had been identified thus far and the COPA Chairman said that the Inland Revenue Department and other agencies would be summoned to discuss the matter.

State Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna, Members of Parliament Tissa Attanayake, Niroshan Perera, Mohamed Muzammil, S. Sridharan, Dr. Upul Galappaththi, B.Y.G Ratnasekera, and Weerasumana Weerasinghe along with a group of government officials were present at the meeting.